Respirator



H. "5. COVER May 7, 1935.

RESPIRATOR Filed March 27, 1933 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Mfg 62 W67;

$19 iiivfruy.

16 Wit/2:55:29.

K6. 7 3 M 6 M4.

'May 7, H. s covz 2, o0o;o64

RESPIRATOR Filed march 27, 1955 v 2 sheets-sheet 2 Patented May 7, 1 935PATENT OFFICE nasrma'ron Harvey s. Cover, South Bend, Ind.

Application March 2'1,

17 Claims.

My invention relates to improvements in respirators, and has for anobject the production of a device to be used for protecting the userfrom dust, smoke, and noxious gases of various kinds.

Another object is the provision of a device for the above purposes whichmay be manufactured at an extremely small cost, perform its functionsefficiently, and yet have a greater capacity for utility than presentdevices now have. A further object of my invention is to provide adevice of the class mentioned, that may be used without occasioning thegreat difficulty in breathing which devices in use heretofore havecaused.

Another object is the provision of a device to which auxiliary filterchambers may 'be securely attached with great ease and speed, and yetthe cost of manufacture of my device is far less than that of presentdevices which may be used with auxiliary filter chambers.

Further objects of my invention are to provide a device that isfoldable, compact, easily put on, well balanced, light, and ispractically foolproof in that it is almost impossible to apply thedevice to the users face in an incorrect manner.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of thecharacter mentioned which,

when in position on the wearer, will not interfere with the wearersclear vision of his work.

Another important object is'the provision of a device having an exhaustvalve which is conveniently placed and thus operatesvery efficiently. J

My invention may behest understood by reference to the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of my device applied to the face of a user;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the device; Fig. 3 is a side elevational.view;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view, taken substantially on the line 4-4 of Fig.2;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view, taken substantially on the line 5-5 ofFig.2;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view, taken substantially on the line 6-6 ofFig.3;

Fig. 7 is a sectional view, taken substantiallyon the line 1-1 of Fig.6;

Fig. 8 is a sectional view, taken substantially on the line 8-8 of Fig.6;

Fig. 9 is a sectional detail view of the preferred form of exhaust valveused in my device, and shows the parts in the relation they assume whenair is being forced outwardly frqm'the device and I 1933, Serial No.662,929

Fig. 10 is a detail view of one of the auxiliary chambers which may beused in my device, and parts are broken away to illustrate theconstrue-1 tion and filters used;

The preferred construction of my device comprises a main shielding bodyl5, which is preferably molded and therefore integral, and has a hollowinterior and wedge-like exterior appearance. Body l5 may be provided atits rear edge with cutouts I6 'for the accommodation of the bridge ofthe nose of the user, and since. these cutouts in my preferredconstruction are identical, the device may be turned upside-down andused in the same manner, as is shown in Fig. 1. This invertible featureof my invention is covered in my co-pending application, Serial No.684,503, filed August 10, 1933.

Centrally and toward the front of,my device, as shown in Fig. 2, may bea flutter valve H which may be formed of two lips l8, preferably formedintegrally with body l5, and adapted normally to remain in closedposition, as shown in Fig 6. Lips 18, may be formed of the same kind andthickness of rubber as body l5, and resemble in cross-section theappearance of a duck's bill, with the extreme forward ends in contact,and their rear edges spaced apart to some extent. Interiorly of mydevice I preferably provide a pair of integral rubber. bosses l9adjacent the rearmost portions of lips l8, and 30 substantiallycentrally vertically of said lips. Since each-boss I9 is similarlyplaced on its lip, it can be seen that the two bosses will contact andcause lip members l8 to remain separated adjacent said bosses. From aninspection of Fig. 4 it can be seen that there is a large air passageprovided around bosses I 9, and from Fig. 6 it can be seen that thispassage continues forwardly and diminishes in size until it is entirelyclosed. by the forward meeting edges of lips l8. It will also be notedthat the bosses I9 serve as fulcrums, so that as the face portion isspread to apply to the face, the valve lips are pressed more firmlytogether to ensure proper closing of the valve.

In the preferred construction of my device the side walls of body I! maybe extended so as to provide filter retaining chambers 20 having endwalls 2|, provided with apertures 22. The side walls of extending filterchambers 20 may be provided with integral extending bosses 23 which maybe of appropriate size and height to engage apertures 24 of extensioncap 25 which may be made of relatively stiff material such as aluminumand have a large opening 55 26 in its outer end wall. A screen 21 may beinserted in cap 25 and thus cover opening 28 and be retained againstflange 28. It can be seen that the space between end walls 2| and screen21 provides a space in which suitable filter material 29 may be placedfor the filtering. of air. Adjacent the inner ends of the walls offilter chambers 20 may be provided suitable flanges 30 which are formedsimply by extending the side wall of body l5 across the inner opening offilter chambers 20. As can be seen in Fig. 5, the side walls of body I5thuscarry large apertures 3| through which filter material 32 isinserted into chambers 20, and will be retained in said chambers byflanges 30. This filter and filter retaining means are covered in mycopending application, Serial No. 684,968, filed August 14, 1933.Preferably, body I5, filter chambers 20, valve I'I, bosses I9, bosses23, and flanges 30 are one integral piece of rubber, and may be formedwith a' minimum of work in molding. As is well known in the art, lips I8may be properly molded by inserting a thin piece of steel so as toseparate the rubber at this point and provide a passage for air at theouter ends of said lips.

Adjacent the rear edges of the side walls the body I5 may be securedappropriate fastening devices or bolts 33 to one of which may beattached head strap 34, and to the other of which may be attached strap35 carrying buckle 36.

I'he'utility and operation of my device is fairly apparent from theforegoing description, and consequently a limited explanation will begiven. The user puts appropriate filter material in chambers 20 and incaps 25 if additional filter material is desired to be used, and pushescaps 25 onto filter chambers 20 and lines up bosses 23 with apertures 24so that the caps may be retained in proper position. Caps -'-25 may beeasily and quickly secured by simply compressing the side walls offilter chambers 20 until bosses 23 readily slip within the walls of caps25, and when they are in line with apertures 24 the resilience of therubber will cause them to be pushed outwardly through said apertures andthus case the secure engagement for caps 25. The types of filters forparticular uses are well known in the art, and of course may be variedto suit the particular need.

After the appropriate filters are in place my respirator may be securedto the face of the user by placing one of cutouts I6 on the bridge ofthe nose and applying head straps 34 and 35 in an appropriate manner. Itcan be seen that when the user inhales, air is drawn inwardly throughfilter chambers 20, and also through extension caps 25, if theseare'being used. Since there is a filter chamber on each side of thepreferred form of my device, it can be seen that air may be inhaled muchmore easily, and since there may be two of such chambers, theeffectiveness of the filtering material should be greater than thepresent respirators which employ a single filter chamber.

During this time lips I8 of flutter valve I"I are drawn together andwill not admit air to the interior of the device, but when the userexhales, the air is forced outwardly around bosses I9 and through theadjacent passage and between lips I8. when the exhalation of air hasbeen completed the resilience of the walls of flutter valve I! willcause the lips I8 to come together and again form an air tight closure.It should be noted that the opening of the flutter valve issubstantially vertically disposed, so that the moisture that condenseson the valve lips will fiow downwardly to the bottom of the opening andbe disposed of instead of clogging the valve for its entire length. Thisis advantageous for free breathing at all times, but especially in coldweather, when the valve is liable to freeze shut if much moisture isallowed to stay for any considerable time in one place. Furthermore, thevertical arrangement of the valve lips, which are a continuation of theconverging side wall of the device, provides a structure whereby thevision of the wearer is not interfered with to any appreciable extent.When the life of the filtering material has been exhausted, it may beeasily removed from filtering chambers 20 by bending it so as to passthrough aperture 3|, or it may be removed by. simply bending flange 30so as to provide a larger opening. If the extension caps 2| are beingused and the life of the filtering material has been exhausted, the capsmay be removed by pressing inwardly on bosses 23 and pulling caps 2|outwardly. maythen be inserted in the device in the above describedmanner.

It can be seen that the life of the filtering material will also beextended by reason of the fact that the user exhales directly toward andinto the flutter valve, and thus it is not necessary for the exhaustedair to pass outwardly through the filter chambers, as is the case withpresent devices where the flutter valve is located a considerabledistance away from the nostrils and mouth.

The entire body of the device is flexible, and because of this featurethe device readily adapts itself to difierent shapes and sizes offeatures so as to provide protection. Since bosses I9 are made as hereindescribed, it can be seen that the device may be used effectively onthin faces as well as rounded faces, for these bosses serve to keep apassage open toward the outer ends of lips l8, even though the sidewalls of body I5 may be pushed outwardly or inwardly when the device isused as aforesaid.

While I have illustrated and described the preferred form ofconstruction for carrying my invention into efiect, this is capable ofvariation and modification without departing from the spirit of theinvention. I, therefore, do not wish to be limited to the precisedetails of construction set forth, but desire to avail myself ,of suchvariations and modifications as come within the scope of the appendedclaims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecured by Letters Patent is:

1. A device of-the character described, comprising .a main body portionhaving a wedgelike exterior terminating in a pair of forwardly extendingopposed lips and arranged to provide a flutter valve, and an intakeopening to the rear of said flutter valve. I

2. A device of the character described, comprising a main body portionhaving a wedgelike exterior terminating in a pair of forwardly extendingopposed lips and arranged to provide a flutter valve, an intake openingto the rear of said flutter valve, and means for separating said lipsfor part of their length.

3. A device of the character described comprising a main body portionformed of an in- ,tegral piece of flexible resilient material andterminating in a pair of forwardly extending Fresh filtering materiallips arranged to provide a flutter valve, and an intake opening in saidmain body portion to the rear of said flutter valve.

4. A device of the character described comprising a substantiallywedge-shaped main body portion of flexible resilient material, the apexof said wedge-shaped body portion being slit to provide a pair offorwardly extending opposed lips and providinga flutter valve, andan'intake opening to the rear of said apex.

5. A device of the character described. comprising a main body portionformed of an integral piece of flexible resilient material and beingprovided with a flutter valve integral therewith.

6. A device of the character described'comprising a main body portionformed of an integral piece of flexible resilient material and beingprovided with a flutter valve integral therewith, and an intake openingin said main body portion.

7. A device of the character described comprising a main body portionformed of an integral piece of flexible resilient material and beingprovided with a flutter valve integral therewith, said valve having 'asubstantially vertical outer opening."

8. A device of the character described comprising a main body portionformed of an inte-.

gral piece of flexible resilient material, said body portion .having anintegral pair of walls adapted to lie against each other to provide aflutter .valve with a substantially upright outer opening.

9. A device of the character described comprising a main body portionformed of an integral piece of flexible resilient material and beingprovided with a flutter valve integral therewith, said valve having asubstantially upright outer opening, and an intake opening.

10. A device of the character described comprising a main body portionformed of an integral piece of flexible resilient material and beingprovided with a flutter valve integralthere with, said valve having asubstantially upright outer opening, and being located so as'to subaflutter valve, said valve having a substantially upright outer opening,and an intake opening.

13. A device of the character described comprising a main body portion,said body portion having a pair of walls adapted to lie against eachother to provide a flutter valve with a substantially upright outeropening.

14. A device of the character described comprising a main body portionbeing provided with a flutter valve, said valve having a substantiallyupright outer opening, and being located so as v to substantiallyregister with the mouth of a user, and an intake opening.

15. A device of the character described comprising a main body portion,said body portion having an integral pair of walls adapted to lieagainst each other to provide a flutter valve with a substantiallyupright outer opening, and an intake .opening. v

16. A device of the character described comprising a main body portionterminating in a pair of forwardly extending lips and arranged toprovide a flutter valve, an intake opening to the rear of said fluttervalve, and means for separating said lips for part of their length.

1'7. A device of the character describedcomprising a main body portionterminating in a pair of forwardly extending lips and arranged toprovide a flutter valve, a member secured to one of said lips andextending therefrom and toward the other of saidlips, and an intakeopening to the rear 01' said flutter valve.

: nanvnvs. COVER.

DISCLAIMEFt 2,000,064.Harvey 8. Cover, South Bend, Ind. RESPIRATOR.Patent dated May 7,

1935. Disclaimer filed March 20, 1943, by the inventor.

Hereby enters this disclaimer to claims 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 12, 13, and 14,in said specification.

[Ofiicial Gazette April13, 1.948.]

